How did you learn about how to count syllables? I learned to place my flat hand horizontally under my chin and say a word, how many times my chin touched my hand... was how many syllables the word contained. Try it, it does work! Now, you can end up adding extra syllables into words because of how you say the word or saying it to slowly or putting emphasis on spots that don't have them.... but overall, if you just say the word like normal..this trick does work.
I have used this for my own boys as they work on their writing lessons from Grandma because she has where they look up dictionary words and must write down the number of syllables in each word as part of it as well as creating a sentence, etc. When we learned about haiku and they had to create their own haiku's, they used this trick.
It goes back to my emphasis that if you give kids some creative tools for learning, they will stick with them for life and always have a good base for understanding!
Now, how many syllables does the word "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" have?
Try the chin trick and see!
Friday, September 2, 2011
Read this blog post so you can say you read it.... Multiple word meanings!
The English language is said to be one of the hardest languages to learn. If that is true... how, as a homeschooling parent do we best approach teaching it.
We have words that have multiple meanings, we have words that are spelled the same but sound different, we have apostrophes that change how a word is used.... confusing to say the least.
So think about this as we start back to school and our kids are learning this in English or Language Arts....
When it comes to things like multiple word meanings or words that are spelled the same but sound different, I think a good visual approach works better than most other methods. Think back to basics and yes, your kids will think it is babyish but it will help establish in their minds the differences. That way, later on in like when they have a job in a fish market and have to scale a fish, then cut and weigh it on the scale for a customer.....they will know the difference! Please read your book, but Mom... I have already read the book. Things like this will be understood because you as a parent gave them a good base to work with!
Now go wind up the cords on the blind before the wind blows them away so you can learn how to scale the fish you just caught but weigh it on the scale before you do that. Then read this blog so you can tell your kids you already read that!
And that is my lesson for the day.....!LOL
We have words that have multiple meanings, we have words that are spelled the same but sound different, we have apostrophes that change how a word is used.... confusing to say the least.
So think about this as we start back to school and our kids are learning this in English or Language Arts....
When it comes to things like multiple word meanings or words that are spelled the same but sound different, I think a good visual approach works better than most other methods. Think back to basics and yes, your kids will think it is babyish but it will help establish in their minds the differences. That way, later on in like when they have a job in a fish market and have to scale a fish, then cut and weigh it on the scale for a customer.....they will know the difference! Please read your book, but Mom... I have already read the book. Things like this will be understood because you as a parent gave them a good base to work with!
Now go wind up the cords on the blind before the wind blows them away so you can learn how to scale the fish you just caught but weigh it on the scale before you do that. Then read this blog so you can tell your kids you already read that!
And that is my lesson for the day.....!LOL
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